DF and I are currently having our fence replaced (the one that divides our backyard from our next door neighbours' yard). The old fence was shabby and nearly falling down, and definitely needed to be replaced on both sides.

"Mr Neighbour" is a tradesman, and has contacts in the fencing industry. Because of this, the new fence is being put up by Mr Neighbour and his friends at a substantial discount. DF and I only have to pay a nominal amount. The savings are several hundreds of dollars. We are grateful to Mr Neighbour for this.

But here's the problem: our neighbours have a very large dog. DF and I went away for several days and returned this afternoon. We found the new fence almost completed, but there was a gap. All over the backyard, were about 10 reeking piles of dog turds. We have a security camera mounted over our shed, and were able to see that the neighbours' dog had been coming into our yard every day (on multiple occasions) and doing its "business" on our lawn.

I'm pretty angry. Surely our neighbours must have noticed the sudden paucity of dog turds in their own backyard? They must have realised that their dog was coming into our yard and doing its business. I wanted to go over there, explain the situation, and ask that one of them come into our yard and clean up their dog's messes.

DF thinks differently. He thinks that because Mr Neighbour is doing us a big favour with the fence, and saving us a lot of money, that it would look rude and petty if we went over and complained about the dog turds. He thinks that because the fence is almost finished, we should just let it slide and clean up the mess ourselves.

What do you guys think? Would it be rude of us to request that the neighbours clean up after their dog, given they're doing us a favour with the new fence?

Agree that a dog doing its business in your yard must be incredibly irritating and pretty revolting to clean up also I would imagine.

Given that it would appear that the only reason the dog has been getting into your yard to do its business is because the fence is being replaced at substantial discount by the neighbour and your contribution is minimal, I would probably let it go.

If it continues after the new fence has been finished, because the dog can find a way in, then definitely speak to the neighbour about it. For 2 reasons - the fence hasn't been finished properly and because the dog can get out.

They may be being rude. Perhaps they should have tied their dog up while the fence is being repaired, perhaps they should watch it constantly, or perhaps they should come over every day and clean up but at the end of the day, it seems as though they're doing you a pretty big favour and maybe in this instance, for the sake of peace and neighbourly relations, it might be a good idea to let it go and see what happens after the fence is finished.

I agree with aussie_chick. This seems like a one-off caused by the fence not being there and doesn't seem like something that would normally happen unless the dog is a fence-hopper. While it's yucky to have had to pick it up, I'd let it go as your neighbour is giving you such a good deal on the fence.

I agree with aussie_chick. This seems like a one-off caused by the fence not being there and doesn't seem like something that would normally happen unless the dog is a fence-hopper. While it's yucky to have had to pick it up, I'd let it go as your neighbour is giving you such a good deal on the fence.

I agree. If it continues after the fence is up, then by all means say something, but wait until then.

If he is letting his dog use your backyard and purposely not cleaning it up because he is doing you a favor that would be pretty sh*tty. It could be the dog is just staking out new territory and your neighbor is not watching him closely. I personally wouldn't want to clean up after his dog but in this case I would grin, bear it, and then try to place some type of barrier in front of the gap to deter the dog until the work is done.

If you were paying full price, then heck yeah I would say something. But being that you are saving hundreds of dollars, I wouldn't say anything. Meanwhile put up something to temporarily block his dog from entering. If neighbor ask why, then you can mention the piles of dung.

I'm with the others. Going back to your OP, dog owners rarely count the piles so I doubt they've even noticed what's happening, much less allowed or encouraged it to reduce their own mess. Given that you're saving a LOT of money on the fence work, and it's reasonable to assume that the dog bombing will cease once the new fence is done, I'd consider it part of the price of the new fence, and pay a neighborhood kid to clean it up if I wasn't willing to do it myself.

I have to say, I wouldn't notice a lack of dog piles in my yard. We clean it up on the weekends (we have a big yard and Pup sticks to the same spots) and I don't really keep count of how many should or should not be there.

I think I agree with your husband. It doesn't sound like its done maliciously or with intentional neglect and you'll be free and clear soon!

I would clean it up myself. But I would take the bag of doggy doo over to them and ask to put it in their garbage can. No way would I want to put a bag full of THAT in my garbage can.

The fact that you are getting a fence for not very much is a good reason not to make an issue out of it, especially since once the fence is done, it won't be a problem anymore.

I like this. Because it alerts them that: 1) their dog crapped 10 times on your lawn 2) You cleaned up their dog's poop (so they can recognize both that you did a disgusting task on their behalf--which makes you both "owed a favor" and "someone who doesn't make a petty fuss") 3) you also aren't going to just be a doormat.

You can say, "Hey, did you notice you have less dog poop in your yard? That's because Fido did it in ours. 10 big piles! Stinky! But since the fence is under repair, we figured we owed you one, so we cleaned it up--but we don't really want it in our garbage cans in case the bag breaks or something, 'cause it's a lot of poop. Here, would you put it in your cans?"

Okay, I will be the lone dissenter here, but as a non-dog owner there would be NO WAY that I would be cleaning up 10 piles of dog poop!

I like dogs, but the main reason we don't have one is that I am totally and thoroughly disgusted by picking up poop. Yuk! DH wanted a dog, and I said fine by me. I will do everything to take care of said dog, including vet visits and training classes, but I refuse to pick up poop. Funny how we don't have a dog.....

I think folks who have dogs are somewhat desensitized to poop pick up. If you have a dog yourself, it may not be a big deal to you to just go and clean it up. However, if you don't have a dog, I don't think you would be out of line to ask your neighbor to do it. It's all in how you approach them. If you ask them nicely, "I don't know if you noticed, but Fido left some pretty large piles on our yard and I was hoping that you would be willing to come clean it up. I have to admit I'm sensitive/grossed out by dog poop and I'd really appreciate it. Thanks!"

I also feel that just getting you a discount on the fence (it's part of their business so probably not a big deal to them) is NOT enough of a reason to give them a pass. They are doing the fence for cheaper, but they are also getting the fence done exactly the way they want so it is a benefit for them as well. Not really as much of a favor as one might think. Also I don't think that doing a favor for someone means that you can expect them to let something like this go. "I saved them $$$ on a new fence, and those neighbors have the gall to ask me to remove "trash" from their yard that I am responsible for?" Sounds pretty SS to me.

Seriously??? All this fuss over one episode of dog poop?!?!? Why can't you throw it in your trash and just be grateful it isn't a constant problem? If someone made this much hoohaw about this WHILE I'm doing them a really big favor, that would be the last time I had anything to do with them. Burglar climbing in your window--tough beans. Flames shooting out of your roof while you're on vacation--too bad. Sign for your packages so you don't have to drive out to the depot on the weekend--no way. Part of being a good neighbor is considering the intention behind the deed and cutting people some slack!